Brush



May 25, 1926.

W. G. ROEPKE BRUSH Filed Nov. 18, 1922 Patented May 25, 1926.

WILLIAM G. ROEPKE, OF HUDSON, WISCONSIN.

BRUSH.

Application filed November 18, 1922. Serial No. 601,738.

This invention relates more particularly to brushes for scouring rotary coils of sterilizing tanks in creameries, and contemplates covering a number of improvements upon the United States Patent Number 1,407,674, issued to me February 21st, 1922. i

In the manufacture of the brush covered bysaid patent, and the extensive use to which it has been put, I have discovered improved modes of construction which render the brush more durable and functionally more eliicient, as well as much more convenient and safer to handle when in use.

One object of the invention is the provision of a split brush constructed to operate after the manner of a pair of tongs to be readily applied to, and withdrawn from, a rotatable, helically coiled pipe, for simultaneously brushing all sides thereof concurrently with its rotation, the bristles of the brush being novelly arranged to effect special brushing action for the inner side of the helical coil, when the brush is in operative position, and also special brushing action for the outside of the pipe when the brush is in operative position, whereby the inner and outer sides of the pipe of the coil will receive a vigorous scrubbing.

A further "objectof the invention is the provision of a brush, which is made oftwo segmental members adapted to surround a pipe, and which is so hingedly connected as to permit one of the members to swing outwardly and shift laterally with respect to the other (as distinguished from the brush cover-ed by the aforesaid patent), whereby to facilitate entrance of the members be tween theindividual coils of the pipe.

A. still further object of the invention is the provision of levers whereby the bristles of the brush may be firmly pressed surroundingly against the pipe from a position lying wholly outside the body lines of the helical coil, so that the hands of the operator wi l not come in contact with the hot adja cent individual coils, as distinguished from the brush covered by the aforesaid patent, in the use of which the hands had to be extended between the individual coils to apply sufiicient pressure to effectively remove the coating on the pipe. v

Other objects of the invention will be pointed out as this specification progresses, the invention consisting in the construction, combination, and arrangement of parts, hereinafter described and claimed.

is concentric with the shaft.

In the fication: V

'Figure 1, is a perspective view of the brush embodying my invention.

Figure 2, is an enlargedside view of same, showing it applied to a pipe.

F gure 3,is a top view of same. Figure 4, is a fragmentary side view of same, shown partly in section.

Figure 5, is a side view of one of the brush members, showing the arrangement of thebristles; and

- Figure 6, is a top view of a sterilizing tank, partly broken away, showing a sterilizing coil rotatably'mount-ed therein and the invention applied thereto. ii

'Referring-to Figure 6, 1 designates a tank, and 2 a journal box supported thereby, there being one for each end of the tank (one end only of thetank beings-hown), and 3 a shaft rotatably mounted iga; said journal boxes. l lxtending radially from said shaft are the supporting arms 4, which inturn are secured to the inner side of the helical pipe coil 5. These arms aresuitably distributed through out the length of the coil, which latter is usually of uniform diameter and pitch and The arms are customarily about one-half to three-quarters of an inch in diameter and are usually made of pipe. The coils are generally formed of two-inch pipe, and are coiled to a pitch of about four orfour and one-half inches, so that the clearance between the individual coils rangesaround two inches. As these coils are very hot, incrustation takes place, leaving a tenacious crust or coating on the surface thereof, which, to obtain best results, must be frequently removed. For cleansing the coil, ordinary brushes of various sorts are at present used, many using an ordinary scrub brush, but all being generally unsatisfactory because of the time consumed, poor work secured, and the danger of injury to employees.

Further, it is j difiicult to thoroughly cleanse the inner side of a helical coil with an ordinarybrush, owing to difficulty of access because of the narrow space between the individual coils.

As indicated at 6, in Figure 6 of the drawdrawings forming part of the speciings, the use of the brush-covered by the aforesaid patent, required that the hands here shown he extendedbetween the individual coils, and inasmuch as the thickness of the brush, together with the length of the Ill bristles occupied the major portion of this space, it is obvious that the fingers were frequently burned by coming in contact with the adjacent coils.

Further, as it is essential that considerable pressure be applied to thoroughly cleanse the coil, and for the purpose of rendering the brush available for coiled pipes of lesser pitch than here shown, I have in the present invention provided lever means, whereby effective pressure may be safely applied from a point outside the body lines of the coil,

The invention comprises two segmental or arcuate brush melnbers 7, adapted to collectively concentri ally extend around opposite sides of the pipe 4:, which forms the coil 5, the latter being here shown as describing a helix of a pitch designated at 8. The members are preferably duplicates, each less in extent than a half circle, thus defining in the line of parting between their respective terminals a relatively narrow space 9, at one side of the pipe, and a relatively wide space 9 at the other. The narrow space is bridged by a hinge member 10, which hinge member is preferably U-shaped, the legs 10 of the U being parallel and extending lengthwise respectively through the brush members, to permit the latter to rotate thereon, thus constituting pivots, the ends of the legs being suitably connected as by the plate 10". The ends 11 of the body of the brush members are preferably flat and parallel, the brush being of suitable length to accommodate a plurality of rows 11 of bristle tufts 12, the rows extending transversely of the pipe.

The inner concave surface 13 of the brush members is concentric with the pipe 4t, and sutiiciently larger in diameter than the latter to form an annular space across which extend the bristle tufts 12. The outer diameter of the brush members is also preferably fornied concentric with the center of the pipe. The body of the brush members, as here shown, is made of wood, the grain thereof running approximately at right an gles to the line 9, which is coincident with a plane passing centrally through the spaces 9 and 9, I having found by experience that this is the best way of directing the grain of the wood to secure the most economic results with reference to the constant swelling and drying action of the wood, due to it be ing constantly subjected to immersion on liquid and frequent washing and then permitted to dry when out of use. Though in i'l'ianufacture these brushes are thoroughly i 'arnished, the holes l l. which are required to be bored through the brush member bodies, permit the moisture to enter the wood. Thus. I have found that a constant swelling and drying process causes the bodies to soon crack and warp, and be thus rendered useless. Also, the bodies when saturated swell out of their original configuration, opening out between the terminals. To obviate these disadvantages I employ novel means for re inforcing the bodies by boring a pair of parallel holes through the latter, the holes being disposed at right angles to the pipe and parallel with the line 5), and spaced as indicated in Figure 3, to come between the rows'll of the holes 1 1-. Into these parallel holes snugly fit the reinforcing wires or members 15, which latter are bent at the periphery of the brush body to extend 0ut wardly at an acute angle to the line 9" to form a handle portion 16. The reinforcing members thus cross the grain of the wood, permitting it to swell or contract as the case may be, thus preventing it from cracking and breaking. This I have found very effettive in preventing brush members from breaking in two when dropped accidentally on the fioor, which was a frequent occurrence before using reinforcen'ients.

By extending the reinforcing wire as shown, I secure a pair of oppositely disposed, outwardly diverging handles, which extend beyond the pivots 10, whereby said pivots become fulcrums about which the brush members respectively revolve when the handles are pressed outwardly in opposite directions.

For the purpose of anchoring the reinforcing wires, 1 preferably connect them by a cross member 16, which is preferably spot welded to the wires, and which in turn is straddled by a staple 1'? firmly driven radially into the brush body.

The usual wires are shown at 17 by which the tufts 12 of bristles are tied to the brush body.

Referring to Figure 6 of the drawings, it will be noted that by mounting the handles 16 nearer the hinge terminal of the brush members and extending them at an acute angle outwardly with reference to the plane 9 between said brush members, I secure ample room between said handles and the adjacent individual coils of the coil 5 for conveniently and safely manipulating the brush.

As indicated in dotted lilies in Figure 2, the hinged ends of the brush members are so formed to permit one member to be swung bodily around the pivot of the other member. so that the outer free end of one member may be shifted toward or away from the pipe, as shown in Figure (5, for a purpose to be hereinafter explained.

In the brush covered by the patent mentioned in the foregoing, all of the bristle tufts were radially disposed, and the ends of the brush members were purposely formed to restrict the swinging movement the 'eof, as specifically set forth in lines 91 and 104- of the specification. I have found it an advantage to have the brush members shiftable, as above described, as it facilitates entrance of the members into thespaces between the individual coils in that the free end of one may be set in advance of the other (see top of Figure 6), so that it may be brought to its operative position and then be swung outwardly to bring its handle to the position indicated in dotted lines, whereby the entrance of the other member is greatly facilitated. This is especially true in coils of small pitch. I have also found it an advantage to make the space 9, or in other words the distance between the outer free ends of the brush bodies, such, as to make it wide enough at all times to permit the supporting arms 4 to freely pass therethrough to avoid striking the latter with more or less force and causing severe shocks to the hands.

In the subject of my former patent, the jaw was chamfered at the outer edge to permit the supporting arms to forcibly separate the members concurrently with its movement along the coil. This I have found to be impracticable as it destroyed the edges of the brush, and the repeated violent shocks received by the operator was fatiguing and dangerous. I have now so arranged the bristles in the adjacent free ends of the brush members as to cause them to impinge upon each other to such an extent that when the brush is closed and in full scouring operation the jaw 9 cannot be further reduced by pressure upon the handle 16 to bring the terminals of the brush bodies into contact with the supporting arms 4:. This has proved a great advantage, as the passing of the supporting arms 4 through the obstructing bristles in the jaw 9 is gradual and without sudden jar and results in more thoroughly cleansing the juncture of said arms with the pipe, at which point incrustation and coating becomes the thickest and is more difficult to dislodge. Further, I have found that the coating is often thickest on the inner side of the coil, and as this part of the coil is most difficult to reach, as hereinbefore stated, I employ a novel arrangement of the bristle tufts to straddle the jaw 9 and the space 9, whereby I secure greater bristle pressure on the pipe at this point.

To this end I have arranged the bristle tufts with respect to the longitudinal axis 18 of the assembled brush members, in a manner to cause the initial major portion of the bristles which occupy the outer half of the circumferential length of the two brush bodies to extend from the concave face thereof, in spaced planes, preferably disposed parallel to the axis 18 and radiating approximately as designated by the lines 20 (Figure 5), to a point 21, which point is located in the area bounded by the concave wall 13 of the opposite brush body, and a plane extending midway between the brush members and being coincident with the axis 18. Further, I make the bristles adjacent the outer ends of the brush body longer than the bristles located between the ends of the brush body, as shown in Figures 4: and 5, so that when the members are swung to operative position (Figure 4), the long bristles of the brush members will initially engage with one another and also duringa completed pipe encircling moven'ient, and thereby become flexed in opposite directions and thus cause them to be collectively extended inwardly to form a compact, individual tuft or rib of bristles which extends preferably the length of the brush. 'This ridge of bristles, as shown, is denser and exerts greater frictional pressure against the pipe than the shorter bristle tufts, which latter stand unbraced and alone and are therefore free to flex sidewise. The bristles of the hinged end of the brush members as shown are likewise longer than the intermediate tufts, and act in a similar manner. By this construction a vigorous brushing action on the coil at the inner and outer sides thereof is assured, as well as effectively bridging the spaces 9 and 9.

The coil 5 is customarily made of copper and heavily coated with tin, as copper coming in contact with cream will (as is well known in the art) impart a metallic flavor to the latter and thus impair the quality of the butter and reduce its selling price. It is therefore very important that the brush bodies be made of material softer than the tin coating of the coil to avoid cutting and scratching the tin by accidental contact therewith thus exposing the copper. The handles 16 are therefore extended outward- 1y, as shown, to avoid coming into contact with the coil, it being understood that the handles may be covered with wood or other soft material.

I claim:

1. A brush comprising a plurality of complementary, arcuate brush members, pivoted connection between said brush members, and a handle connected to each brush member, said handles extending divergently beyond said pivoted connection.

2. A brush comprising oppositely disposed arcuate brush members, oppositely disposed spaced handles, one secured to each brush member and extending outwardly therefrom, and a pivotal connection between said brush members located adjacent the point of securement of said handles, said connection being constructed to render the brush members swingable toward each other and bodily shiftable relative to each other.

3. A brush comprising oppositely disposed semi-annular brush members, hingedly connected together to encircle a pipe to brush the outer surface thereof, each 'of said brush members including a body portion made of fibrous material such as wood the grain of the wood running genera across the line of parting; between said brusli members, and a reinforcing member for each body portion extending into the body thereof across the grain of the Wood to reinforce the latter, and outwardly beyond said hinge connection to form a handle, for the purpose set forth.

4. A pipe cleaning brush coniprising' a pair of semi-cylindrical brush members, a pivotal link connection between adjacent ends of said brush members permitting 0t relatively lateral bodily movement between the latter, and radially converging bristles connected to the concave sides of the semicylindrical brush members, said bristles being longer near the longitudinally disposed edges of the sen'ii-cyliiulrical brush mem bers, said longer bristles beingmounted to engage one another in advance of and during; a pipe brushing operation.

5. A brushcomprising oppositelydisposed curved brush members, the bristles Of each brush member radially converging from the concave surface thereof, the bristles adjacent the longitudinally disposed edges of the curved brush members being mounted to engage one another in advance of and during a pipe brushing operation, link means to connect the brush members to each other. and handles penetrating the brush members.

In testimony whereof I afiiX my signature.

WILLIAM G. ROEPKE. 

